The present invention generally relates to shipping containers.
Shipping containers today have their doors “locked” by using an ISO standard mechanical bolt seal. In this arrangement, a bolt with a unique (to the manufacturer) serial numbered bolt is inserted into the right hand container door lock hasp and is secured in-place with a bolt housing containing the same serial number. The bolt needs to be cut with bolt cutters to be removed. Although there is an ISO standard for these bolts, they are not necessarily identical from one manufacturer to another. Variations include the length and diameter of the bolt and the mechanical locking mechanism that secures the bolt to its mated housing.
The abovementioned products and concepts have been universally accepted by industry. Although far from fool proof, the technique does provide a simple method of keeping the doors on shipping containers closed unless deliberate action is taken to cut the bolt. It is quite common for bolts to be cut and containers opened and then re-sealed as the containers travel from origin to destination. Unfortunately, there is no means readily available for determining when or where bolts were cut and replaced. Without this knowledge, an end shipper has no recourse to determine when a container bolt has been removed and replaced. Theft or loss assignment, therefore, can be difficult at best.
A need exists for improvement in securing, monitoring, and tracking shipping containers. This, and other needs, are addressed by one or more aspects of the present invention.